Lettuce Wraps, Garden Diversity and Mediterranean Gardening
In this end-of-May episode Ellen and C.L. discuss using lettuce to wrap tasty fillings, for a meal or snack. We explain what a botanist does, the importance of several types of diversity in our yards and gardens, and answer Pete’s question about applying Mediterranean style to a Minnesota garden.
:28 What’s for dinner: Lettuce Wraps
3:22 Insider Information: What is a botanist?
7:33 Eat/Drink/Grow: Garden Diversity
21:58 Love Letters and Questions: From Pete about “Mediterranean Gardening”
All manner of lettuce plants can be used for a wrap. If you’re growing your lettuce, let the leaves get larger than you might otherwise pick for a salad.
Nature often places a diverse selection of plants together. Gardeners might want to emulate that!
In C.L.’s yard there are many plants, some native, such as this sumac, aster, and Vernonia, and others non-native like the panicle hydrangea. In addition to native and non-natives, there are flowers that are in bloom at different times. In fact, there is always something in flower on this property, every month of the year.
Some plants that grow in Mediterranean climates, such as pomegranates, wouldn’t live in the upper mid-west. But Pete could use plants that are hardy where he lives but are also drought-tolerant.